Battery Technology 101

Deep Cycle Battery Technology 101Content

The Opportunity

The Potential

• Innovative EV Traction Battery Technology for Floor machines

•Lead Acid Battery technology overview•Comparison of Deep Cycle battery Technologies

•Reduced costs•Increased Equipment Performance•Environmental and LEED compliance

•Providing best in class battery solutions for floor machines

•Increased Customer Satisfaction

Presentation Outcomes� Understand basic Battery terminology as it relates to the deep cycle battery

market.

� Define the three main types of Deep Cycle battery technologies used in floor

care equipment.

� Understand the four main construction differences between Deep Cycle

battery types.

� Understand how construction and active material composition used in battery

design affects the longevity of the battery.

� Identify which Deep Cycle battery types are most expensive to maintain.

� Identify how to evaluate best value and lowest cost of ownership for your

customer’s battery purchases.

� Identify Deep Cycle Battery types which are certified for LEED certified facilities

and environmentally sensitive areas.

Outline of Presentation:

Section one:1. Battery Construction basics2. Battery Plates or Grids3. Active materials4. Electrolyte Composition5. Electrolyte Volume

Section two:1. Comparing technologies

Section three:1. Determining best value in Deep Cycle battery technologies for floor machines.

Battery TechnologyOverview

ü Not All Deep Cycle Batteries technologies provide the same benefits and performance.

ü It is important to understand how construction variables affect lead acid battery performance and life.

ü By understanding Discover EV Traction benefits and features, you can ensure you are providing the best value to your customers.

Next:

Review of the basics of battery construction and battery technology types available.

You can ensure that you are providing the best battery solution for Floor Machine Applications considering these factors:

1. Deep Cycle Performance2. Environmental compliance3. Total cost of ownership

Lead Acid Battery ConstructionTerminals

Watering Fill Caps or Safety Relief Valves (VRLA)

Separators between plates

Poly or ABS Case Materials

Plates or Grids Intercell Connectors

These are the main constructioncomponents that comprise alead acid battery.

This generic diagram for leadacid batteries exposes the majorcomponents that we will explainfurther in the next 6 slides.

These components and how theydiffer in battery types affectperformance and life of abattery.

Battery Construction - Plates• Plates or Grids are the lead framework of

a lead acid battery.• Battery plate thickness is a major factor of

durability and longevity of a battery.• The thicker the plate, the more capable

the battery is of repeated deep discharge cycling for applications like floor machines.

• Lead Calcium alloys are used in Discover EV Traction product to reduce internal heat and gassing during charging, designed for extending the overall battery life.

Next:

We will illustrate the differencebetween a thin plate lead acidbattery and a true deep cyclebattery with thick platetechnology.

Thin plate (starting) batteryThe thin plate technology has many thin plates in parallel to achieve low resistance, with high surface area.

The thin plate battery does not allow deep cycling, and is most applicable for short bursts of power mostly used in automotive starting applications.

Thick plate (deep-cycle) batteryThe deep-cycle battery has thick plates for improved cycling abilities. The deep-cycle battery generally allows upwards of 500 cycles and are designed to withstand repeated discharges over long durations.

It is important that batteriesused for floor machines areconstructed with thick platetechnology.

Batteries with thin platetechnology are typically lessexpensive, however are notdesigned for floor machineapplications.

Next we will look how theactive material of a deep cyclebattery is added.

Battery Construction - Plates

Battery Construction Thicker plate technologies hold more active material on the grid for more capacity, longer life and durability.

Battery capacity is lost when active material is shed from the plate.

This occurs through use-over-life, but also occurs prematurely by exposure to excessive heat and incorrect or overcharging situations.

Active Material

Separator

Pasted Grid

Construction - Active Material Composition

Increased Density:More robust

Higher discharge run timeLonger Life

Lower Density:High initial capacity

Shorter life

The active material is proprietary to the manufacturer.

The density of the active material is important to the deep cycling ability and life of a deep cycle battery.

Discover EV Traction uses maximum density active material in the design of EV Traction Batteries.

Construction: Electrolyte Composition• Electrolyte is a liquid substance

that acts as a medium to conduct electricity.

• The Specific Gravity of electrolyte can be higher or lower.

• Lower specific gravity of Electrolyte generates less heat.

• Higher acid in the Electrolyte result in more power and shorter life.

• Discover EV Traction uses Lower acid ratios resulting in reduced heat and longer life.

More HeatShorter Life

Less HeatLonger Life

Lower Acid to H2O Ratio

Higher Acid to H2O Ratio

Construction - Electrolyte Volume

More Electrolyte Volume to Active Material

Less Electrolyte Volume to Active Material

AKA ``Acid Starved``

Higher Electrolyte Volume to Active Material Ratio:•Shorter Life•Longer initial Run time•Faster Plate breakdown and shedding

Lower Electrolyte Volume to Active Material Ratio:•Longer life•Consistent Run time over life of battery •Better Plate Preservation

For floor machine applications the electrolyte volume is an important factor to the longevity of battery and the ability of the battery to provide consistent power over the life of the battery.

ACID STARVED is sometimes what this construction feature is called.

Comparing Deep Cycle Battery TypesThese are the three types of lead acid batteries being compared.

Two major cost factors for floor machine batteries are:- the cost of maintenance

to service floodedbatteries

- the cost of early replacement for batteries not specifically constructed for robust traction applications.

FloodedLead Acid

AGM

EV TractionDry Cell

Deep Cycle Batteries1. Flooded Lead Acid These are the three main

construction factors of flooded lead acid batteries that add to the overall cost to the customer.

Flooded Lead Acid batteries are rarely maintained to manufacturers specifications resulting in shortened life.

Watering Fill Caps requiring maintenance

Filled with High Acid Ratio Liquid Electrolyte

Typically Thin plates

Deep Cycle Battery TypesFlooded Lead Acid Disadvantages:• FLA is Hazardous “flooded” technology and contains liquid

sulfuric acid solutions.• With internal chemical reactions and heating during

charging, they inherently lose water that must be replaced through regular maintenance, or damage to the batteries will occur.

• Off-gassing results in corrosion and acid damage to equipment, surroundings, and potential personal injury.

• FLA requires caution and venting to minimize Health and Safety issues during charging and maintenance.

• FLA has a high cost for storage, HAZMAT shipping and handling regulations.

• FLA is NOT maintenance-free and should last as long as Traction types but often doesn’t due to its required maintenance schedules to achieve life expectancy.

• Highest cost to own when maintenance and premature failure replacement factored in.

Flooded Lead Acid Advantages:• Low initial cost• Widely available

Deep Cycle BatteriesAGM

This Battery Technology is also known as VRLA (valve regulated lead acid).

This battery type is maintenance-free and non-hazardous (sealed).

AGM requires a specific charging profile.

Typically constructed with a thin plate technology, which shortens overall battery life.

Valve Regulated Safety Relief Valves

Absorbed Electrolyte

Thin plates with glass mat separators

Deep Cycle Battery TypesAGM Lead Acid Disadvantages:• Reduced life due to thinner plates.• Reduced life due to reduced active material density.• Reduced life due to higher active material to acid

ratio.• AGM grids cannot withstand being repeatedly cycled

to depth of Discharges greater than 50%.• Higher cost to own when performance and capacity

(run time and life) are factored in.

AGM Lead Acid Advantages:• Sealed VRLA category• Non Spillable and Maintenance –free• Minimal Health and Safety requirements• Shipped as non-hazardous goods• Widely available• Low self discharge rates.

Deep Cycle BatteriesEV Traction Dry Cell

This Battery Technology is known as VRLA (valve regulated lead acid).

This battery type is maintenance-free and non-hazardous.

EV Traction Batteries are constructed with thicker lead plates, high oxide densities and measured electrolyte ratios and volumes designed to tolerate discharge currents and greater depths of discharge.

This technology has the lowest cost to own.

Valve Regulated Safety Relief Valves

Absorbed Electrolyte

Thick Plates with glass mat separators

Deep Cycle Battery TypesEV Traction Advantages:• Non-Hazardous, Non-gassing and Non-spillable.• Approved for environmentally sensitive areas.• Safeguards against spill related injuries and damage.• Eliminates corrosion due to off gassing• Does not require ventilated charging room• Widely available in replacement footprints• Less charging time than Traction Gel Dryfit• Thicker plates, and higher density/more active

materials, resulting in longer life and increased capacity.

• Lower Specific Gravity (Acid Density ratio to active material) resulting in longer life.

• Lower total cost of ownership when maintenance, health and safety and environmental compliance, and performance are factored in.

EV Traction Dry Cell Disadvantages:• Proprietary Charging algorithms required• Higher initial cost to own than Flooded Lead Acid

and AGM.

Compare Design Factors:High Quality Deep Cycle Technologies Flooded Advanced

AGMEV

Traction Dry Cell

Designed for Longer Run Times ü û ü

Designed for High-rate/long duration discharges û û ü

Designed for longer life ü û üHigh Charge Retention û ü üShorter Charging time û ü üMaintenance RequiredA. Inspection B. Cleaning C. Watering

OftenA.B.C

PeriodicA.

PeriodicA.

Initial purchase price $ $$$ $$$Lowest Cost to own û û ü

Compare Health & Safety Factors: High Quality Deep Cycle

TechnologiesFlooded Advanced

AGMEV Traction

Dry Cell

Non Gassing / Non- Spillable û ü ü

HVAC regulations compliant û ü ü

Eliminates corrosion due to off-gassing û ü ü

Does not require ventilated charging rooms û ü ü

Safeguards against spill-related injuries & damage û ü ü

High Quality Deep Cycle Technologies Flooded Advanced AGM

EV Traction Dry Cell

Recyclable and made with recycled products ü ü ü

Designed for use in Sensitive areas û ü ü

Exempt from HAZMAT Shipping requirements û ü ü

Compliant with LEED (USGBC) Certification û ü ü

Compliant with OSHA Occupational Health & Safety Regulations û ü ü

Delivers maximum Maintenance-Free life without additional resources û ü ü

Comprehensive design to conserve resources, improve safety and reduce waste

û û ü

Compare Environmental Sustainability

The Graphic Truth

As tested in Accordance with the BCI-06 specification or cycle life testing of electric vehicle and cycling capacity.

EV Traction Dry Cell outperforms high quality Deep Cycle competitors in:

• Peak capacity• Sustained capacity,• And useable life to 80% of original capacity

The Graphic TruthEV Traction Dry Cell provides the lowest total cost of ownership.